Investment fund raises questions about Alberta tar sands – Reuters

Alberta’s sprawling tar sands region holds the second largest oil reserve in the world after Saudi Arabia, but investors lured by the promise of black gold should think twice about the environmental risks, a Canadian investment fund warns.

In a new report, Northwest & Ethical Investments LP describes how companies operating in the tar sands – including global giants BP, Shell and Total – are exposed to “litigious, regulatory, policy and social license risks.”

Lawsuit Risks

One risk is Aboriginal rights litigation since oil sands producers operate in areas overlapping Aboriginal traditional territories. The Beaver Lake Cree Nation has already filed a lawsuit, citing a treaty written into the Constitution then ensured they would be able to continue hunting, trapping and fishing on their ancestral lands. The Cree are seeking an injunction to end the tar sands operations’ destruction of those lands, damage to the wildlife, and fouling of the rivers.

About Us

RAVEN raises legal defence funds to assist Indigenous Peoples who enforce their rights and title to protect their traditional territories. Through our public education programs, RAVEN collaborates with Indigenous Peoples to eliminate environmental racism and foster a greater understanding of indigenous rights and governance.

RAVEN acknowledges that we are situated (guests) on unceded Lekwungen and Coast Salish traditional territories.